POWER UP, the award-winning UK initiative elevating exciting Black UK talent and addressing anti-Black racism and racial disparities in the music sector, announces today the exciting details of the new partnership with Arts Council of Wales and how people can get involved.
Between 12th-19th September 2022 POWER UP and Arts Council of Wales will bring digital masterclasses, in partnership with leading independent distributor Believe, to Black music creators based in Wales and music creators and industry professionals based outside of London. Experts in the Believe team will run the masterclasses covering subjects:
- A&R feedback (Wales-based Black music creators only)
- Campaign management (Black music creators and industry professionals based outside of London)
- Distribution (Black music creators and industry professionals based outside of London)
- Marketing (Black music creators and industry professionals based outside of London)
- Nations and regions (Black music creators and industry professionals based outside of London)
- Funding (Black music creators and industry professionals based outside of London)
Eligible music creators and industry professionals can find out more and sign up for the masterclasses on the PRS Foundation website. Additionally, a further four in-person masterclass session will be programmed for January 2023 and more information will be announced in the coming months.
This new partnership with Arts Council of Wales will also over the coming months begin the process of setting up a Welsh Black Music Action Group. Formed as an outcome of focus groups, the action group will contribute to and drive the execution of the POWER UP Movement in Wales and to play an impactful part in moving the needle in the music industry in Wales.
Additionally, in February 2023 POWER UP will host a special networking event in London for invited Wales-based Black music creators and industry professionals, as well as throughout the partnership, POWER UP Movement related conversations with the Black Music Coalition, Black Lives in Music, ADD, BAFA and other related UK-wide initiatives will take place to enable the delivery of bespoke POWER UP Movement outcomes in Wales.
Yaw Owusu, Senior POWER UP Programme Manager at PRS Foundation said, “This exciting new partnership with Arts Council of Wales, and with support from Believe, will enable POWER UP to reach and support Black music creators and industry professionals based in Wales in targeted and impactful ways. I encourage the Black talent in Wales to get in touch and get involved with this valuable series of opportunities to help steer and develop careers in music.”
Andrew Ogun, Agent for Change at Arts Council of Wales said, “Arts Council Wales are delighted to partner with POWER UP and Believe on this crucial initiative that seeks to support Black music creators in Wales. The breadth of Black, Welsh talent that we have is extraordinary, and it’s a privilege to be able to provide a platform and provide the resources to take these artists to the next level of their creative journey. Music of Black Origin in Wales is a bubbling melting pot of talent, and we are excited to support the next generation of artists coming through within these genres. “
Leigh Morgan, Global Director, Believe Electronic said, “We are very proud to continue to support the POWER UP program in partnership with the wonderful team at PRS Foundation. It’s exciting for Believe to be able to help the Black music community of artists and professionals on their journey and help them reach their goals. There are so many possibilities, and we consider it such an important initiative to help break down the systemic barriers and create a fair and level ecosystem. We are looking forward to meeting everyone.”
Launched in 2021 with the premiere of ‘Time To Power Up’, POWER UP was Co-Founded by Ben Wynter and PRS Foundation in partnership with YouTube Music, Beggars Group, Spotify and the Black Music Coalition. The initiative brings together several music industry partners across all sectors to accelerate change, with supporters including Creative Scotland, Believe, Simkins, Arts Council of Wales, Paul Hamlyn Foundation, plus AIM, the BPI, the FAC, The Ivors Academy, the MMF, the MPA, MPG, The Musicians’ Union, PPL, PRS for Music and the PRS Members’ Fund, as well as Associate Partner, Daft Springer, who each bring added-value support to POWER UP Participants.
More than 80 Black music executives and creators have come together to contribute and set the direction for POWER UP. An Executive Steering Group (ESC) was established in late 2020 featuring some of the most influential Black professionals in the UK music industry. Alongside the ESC, seven focus groups covering Recording and Publishing, Live, Platforms, Gender, Sexuality, Enterprise and Regionality delved deeper into the barriers Black music creators and professionals have experienced across the sector and how they could be addressed.
The first 12 months of POWER UP’s impactful work was recently recognised by the newly launched Changemaker Award from IMPALA, which aims to put the spotlight on projects that promote change in the independent sector and inspire others to take action.
Now in its second year, the POWER UP Participant network is an 80-person strong network, including Wales-based Participants, Lekan Latinwo, Mace the Great and Tumi Williams, bringing varied experiences and considerable expertise to the Participant Programme network and the wider POWER UP Movement and has already powered up award-winning talent and those who are dominating playlists and lineups and are taking up senior and Board positions across the industry.
Find out more about POWER UP and how you can get involved on PRS Foundation’s website.